Legion World Forums LEGION OUTPOST Bits o' Legionnaire Business Post ZH Legion: Volume 5 - What Makes Us Special (August 26, 2023)

Feel daunted by the length of this thread? You can also check out the Recap Thread to catch up!

VOLUME 4: MOVING FORWARD

Xanth Prime, capital city of Xanthu

Dreamer, Nura Nal of Naltor; precognition
Echo, Troy Stewart of Earth (South Africa and Trinidad and Tobago); sound manipulation
Ferro, Andrew Nolan of 20th century Earth (USA); previously could turn his body into durable iron, but now stuck in his iron form
Gear, I.Z.O.R. of Linsnar; bio-mechanical techno-morphing
Insect Queen, Lonna Leing of Xanthu; morphs into various insect forms, gaining the powers of the forms she takes
Kinetix, Zoe Saugin of Aleph; advanced telekinesis and animation of objects; affinity for magic
Lume, of Silvan; energy being made of light
Kid Quantum II, Jazmin Cullen of Xanthu; time manipulation. Current Legion leader.
Microbe, Drura Sehpt of Somahtur; generate and control harmful and beneficial microorganisms
Nightwind, Berta Skye Harris of Earth (Iceland) and Enwa; wind and air manipulation, enhanced vision
Particon, Jennifer Sanchez of Earth (India and Philippines); "hard light" energy casting and manipulation, disruption of energy flow
Star Boy, Thom Kallor of Xanthu; gravity manipulation

Uncanny Amazers

Atmos, Marak Russen of Xanthu; nuclear energy blasts, flight, enhanced strength and durability
Kal Bodo of Xanthu; phrenology and psychometry activated upon touching another's head
Konk!, of Xanthu; detachable floating head, if she fails to reattach her head to her body, a new one with a different personality grows
Radion, Roy Travich of Earth (Italy and Madagascar); flight and emission of radiation

**************************************************************************

Twelve Legionnaires had stayed behind to join the gala on Xanthu; definitely enough that nobody could say Xanthu was not a priority of the team. They milled about the large hall, giving interviews and autographs, and chatting with dignitaries. Some, like Kinetix and Echo, were having the time of their lives. Others...

Dreamer kept her face impassive, a mask of serenity, as she glided to the banquet table. Many of her colleagues thought precognition was as easy as reading a horoscope; but in fact, it was more like using a search engine. Anyone with the gift could see into the future, but knowing where to look and what to search for was half the battle.

For instance, when trying to predict the assassin Akka's next target, Nura had succeeded by focusing on Akka's suspected employer - rather than on Akka herself.

The frustrating thing though, was that so many sentients here had strong emotions that could lead them to doing something stupid... after all, Kid Quantum and Atmos had just jointly unveiled the plan Star Boy had proposed so long ago... a way of tying Xanthu closer to the Legion and the United Planets. Having the Amazers join the Legion Reserve, and getting first pick at graduating Cadets who did not want to - or could not - join the Legion. In their status as Legion Reservists, the Amazers would also have a hotline to the main team should there be a need.

Nura had not needed her precognition to expect that there would be a few mutters. Xanthu would still be "second best", in a way, many had said. Especially after the first batch of new recruits had been announced.

The pool had been small: of the Cadets who had participated in the final exam some time back, and had not been offered membership, only 10 had performed well enough to be offered a slot on the Amazers - after all, the Legion still wanted to send some of their best. Mandalla had joined the Legion medical team; and Density, Lamprey, Tellus, Sizzle, Hotshot and Stone Boy had elected to remain in the Cadet program. But Night Girl had seized the opportunity wholeheartedly, arguing that her weakness to light would be less pronounced on the satellites around Xanthu. She had opened Spectrum's eyes to the notion that his color-changing would be of greater use in space as well; and they could support Xanthugov's experiments with the application of light. Finally, Porcupine Pete had been improving the firing of his quills, but admitted that stray shots would be less dangerous to bystanders in the vacuum of space.

As Night Girl, Porcupine Pete and Spectrum came forward to join fellow Amazers Kal Bodo, Konk! and Radion, the crowd went wild.

One of Xanthu's ministers, the pompous Petromir Balsoterte, slammed his fist, stood up and accused the Legion of sending their rejects to Xanthu. Kid Quantum coolly countered that all three had scored top marks at the Academy on everything but the range and versatility of their powers. Atmos' eyes blazed as he said the Amazers had rejected some Cadets who'd wanted to join - staying silent on the fact that those Cadets had not been offered the chance to. As Balsoterte opened his mouth to protest, Atmos motioned to the new recruits to show their stuff. Spectrum quickly coated Night Girl in black, and she bent over and lifted the entire stage and podium with one arm. As the crowd gasped, Pete flicked his arms, sending quills above the crowd. Many ducked, but it was not needed... the quills embedded themselves into a board, and spelled the words "We are looking forward to being part of the Uncanny Amazers!"

That mollified many in the crowd, though a few more continued to argue. "Xanthu is on the AP AND UP frontier, we deserve more!" Eliza Melonila yelled out. "Why don't our Xanthusian Legionnaires also rejoin the Amazers?" Michael Xitega questioned. Newly-elected Prime Minister Q'Bahl* shushed his colleagues, glaring at them as he explained that recent events, such as Robotica's attack, showed that Xanthu was stronger together with its allies. "Without support from the Khunds and AP, we would have had far fewer survivors. And the Legion is maintainintg a dedicated Threshold to Xanthu in case we need reinforcements." His tone and pose indicated a sense of finality. "Besides, we had these debates in parliament, and I know for a fact all of you were present and were given ample time to raise your objections," he looked each of his fellow politicians in the eye. Momentarily cowed, each fell silent. Smiling, Q'Bahl faced the camera. "Now, for those who missed it, we will replay the revitalization of the Xanthuan Tropical Rainforests..."

"That Xitega will be trouble," Nura whispered to Star Boy as he came up to her, drinks in hand.

"When?" Thom asked.

"Not a vision, studmuffin," Nura smiled as she took the champagne glass Thom offered. "Just intuition."

"I think anyone who doesn't see that is blind..." Thom laughed as he sipped his own drink. "Though I don't need your visions to know that I should listen to you..." Turning serious, he faced Nura. "Tell me we did the right thing."

"You don't need me to say that," Nura fixed Thom's eyes in hers. "It was a brilliant plan, and some of those politicians are just making a show. Besides... you love the Legion, I love the Legion... and our gifts are most useful centrally, where we can use them to help other worlds too." She took a bigger gulp of her drink. That question had been asked; none of the full Xanthuan Legionnaires wanted to be stationed permanently on Xanthu. Why would they? It wasn't selfish... they were more needed on Legion World, where they could be more easily deployed elsewhere. Of course, maybe there was a bit of selfishness there - after having so many adventures and experiences with the team, each of them also did want the richness of being a full Legionnaire...

"It meets everyone's needs, Thom," Nura squeezed his hand...

... then gasped.

"I didn't squeeze that hard, did I?" Thom quipped. "A vision?"

"Yes," Nura quickly flew off to Q'bahl. "Excuse me, Ambassador Jeryl," Nura bowed to the fin-headed purple beauty chatting with Q'bahl. "Q'bahl, we need Xanth-Prime to scan coordinates 38* 47* 56* now."

Having fought alongside Nura during the Robotican attacks, Q'bahl knew better than to question her. He gave the order, and not moments later came the reply.

"Asteroid heading for Xanth-Prime, sir!"

Before Q'bahl could say another word, Nura had already called Kid Quantum and Atmos. Taking to the sky, the Legionnaires and Amazers began to fan out.

***************************************************************************************

The Lower Atmosphere over Xanthu

Kinetix shielded her eyes from the asteroid's light, even as her telekinetic shields helped her and hear teammates withstand the heat. Even with their transuits on, she was beginning to feel uncomfortably warm. "This thing's bigger than Mordru's ego! Come on, we have to deflect it soon, or else..."

"It's already causing atmospheric disturbances!" Atmos yelled over the flight ring network. "Move fast, or there won't be a Xanth-Prime left to save!"

"I always did want to try my hand at batball," Star Boy grunted as he focused his powers on the asteroid. "Come on, come on..."

"Let me help you nudge it," Kinetix added her power to the mix, shifting the asteroid's trajectory.

"And I will help slow it down," Kid Quantum unleashed a quantum bubble. "It's difficult enough to control at this velocity..."

"We're doing it!" Sweat dripped down Thom's face as he watched the asteroid slowly change course. "Just a bit more..."

"Wait!" Zoe had to steady herself. "I feel a pulse of.... something..." Her eyes widened as she felt a familiar surge of magical energy. "Magic, watch out!" Not that it would do any good; after all, magic was very unpredictable!

She flew out of the way just in time, as a portion of the asteroid rocketed through Star Boy's gravity field and smashed into a satellite behind Kinetix! Another flew in the opposite direction, and without Zoe's warning would have taken off Kid Quantum's head. Instead, it winged a Xanthugov cruiser.

"No!" Thom expanded his field, forming a barrier that pushed back against the main asteroid. A few pieces still flew off here and there, punching through metal and hurtling towards Xanthu...

"Get away!" Thom yelled as he and Zoe both pushed at the main asteroid, sending it hurtling back into space. Except... the asteroid began to pick it speed.

"Thom, slow it down!" Jazmin snapped.

"That's not me!" Thom shook his head in consternation.

"Jaz, that was magic!" Zoe said as she turned her attention to the cruiser, repairing its wing. "I felt magic!"

"Your magical sense is tingling, eh?" Jazmin said, even as she enveloped the falling satellite in a quantum bubble to slow its fall. "Take a team and follow it..."

"I have your team ready," Dreamer floated into view. Echo, Lume, Particon, Night Girl and Radion followed behind. Lume smiled. "In my light form, I should easily be able to follow it." Collapsing inwards into itself, Lume resembled a tiny glowing firefly, and zipped off.

"Lume is fast, but I can follow it," Particon smiled. "I detect energy, after all. In light form, we can't easily trace Lume's flight ring. " She took off after Lume's bright form.

"Hmph..." Radion muttered as he watched his two-time former teammate** fly away.

Nura turned to the rest. "Thom, you should go with them. Zoe, one of the asteroid pieces hit a hospital; you're the only one who can uncover the victims safely. Konk! will meet you there, she'll help search for victims."

Zoe opened her mouth to protest, then sighed. "If it were someone else, I might argue, but Nura knows best," she quipped. "See you planetside." Consulting her flight ring, Zoe zoomed down to Xanthu.

"You know what to do," Jazmin winked as she levitated downwards, guiding the broken satellite. "Call us if you need us."

"I'm staying here too," Nura kissed Thom on the cheek. "Now, go."

Thom opened his mouth. At the look of Nura's face, he grinned. "Hey, if even Kinetix knows not to argue..." He grabbed Nura and kissed her full on the mouth. As she blushed, Thom whispered, "At least I can still surprise you sometimes." Then with a wink, he, Echo, Night Girl and Radion took off to follow Particon.

Nura patted her hair into place as she watched Thom fly off. Then, grinning, she descended back to the surface. "Ferro, Lonna, I need you to help stabilize a collapsing building... Gear, Microbe, there are some smoke inhalation victims on a farm..."

******************************

IB's notes:

1) Q'Bahl led Xanthu's defense versus Robotica in Legion Worlds 4. Star Boy and Dreamer were among the defenders.

2) Particon and Radion joined McCauley's Workforce together (Legionnaires 43-51), then joined the Uncanny Amazers (Starman 50 / LSH 123-124 / L* 79-80).

Feel daunted by the length of this thread? You can also check out the Recap Thread to catch up!

VOLUME 4: MOVING FORWARD

Deep Space, on the edge of Affiliated Planets space

Echo, Troy Stewart of Earth (South Africa and Trinidad and Tobago); sound manipulation
Lume, of Silvan; energy being made of light
Particon, Jennifer Sanchez of Earth (India and Philippines); "hard light" energy casting and manipulation, disruption of energy flow
Star Boy, Thom Kallor of Xanthu; gravity manipulation

Uncanny Amazers

Night Girl, Lydda Jath of Kathoon; super-strength in darkness
Radion, Roy Travich of Earth (Italy and Madagascar); flight and emission of radiation

*************************************************************************************

"This way," Particon motioned as she followed Lume's trail through the inky blackness. She arched her body, turning sharply. "That rock definitely isn't a normal rock, the way it twists and turns so."

"You would know, wouldn't you..." muttered Radion.

"Of course she does?" Echo glanced sideways at Radion. "It's in her powerset to trace energy trails, and she's good at what she does."

"Thanks, Troy," Particon smiled. Then she used her telepathic earplugs to open a 1-1 channel with Radion. "Roy, if this is about me leaving the Amazers..."

"You left Xanthu, and you left me, Jen." Roy replied. Then he cut the connection off.

Jennifer grit her teeth, then pushed Roy's reaction to the back of her mind. She would need to sit with him later, but for now, she had a mission to accomplish.

*************************************************************************************


Xanth Prime, capital city of Xanthu

Ferro, Andrew Nolan of 20th century Earth (USA); previously could turn his body into durable iron, but now stuck in his iron form
Gear, I.Z.O.R. of Linsnar; bio-mechanical techno-morphing
Insect Queen, Lonna Leing of Xanthu; morphs into various insect forms, gaining the powers of the forms she takes
Microbe, Drura Sehpt of Somahtur; generate and control harmful and beneficial microorganisms


*********************************************************************************

Microbe made sure to approach her patients from the front - on Legion World, and increasingly on Earth, everybody knew her; but here on Xanthu, sentients weren't quite as used to diversity. Element Lass had warned her. And these people had been through a lot. She eyed the coughing young boy before her, clutching at his teary-eyed mother. "I can help, if you let me? My name is Microbe, and I'm a Legionnaire."

The mother looked frightened for a moment, then nodded cautiously. Microbe touched a hand to the boy's chest, and released a strain of bacteria that had evolved on Venus. They consumed sulfur and carbon dioxide. After a few seconds, the boy stopped coughing; Microbe then unleashed another bacteria that would soothe the boy's throat. Within seconds he was beaming.

"Oh, thank you, thank you," the mother clutched Drura's hand and sobbed. Drura smiled as she patted the woman's hand.

"Sorry to interrupt, Drura." Gear's head snaked its way towards her. "I've got my hands full with more rescued victims..."

Drura's gaze followed Gear's neck to his body, which had sprouted several hovering stretchers, each filled with a coughing victim. "Easy folks, we're almost there," he said soothingly.

"Sorry ma'am, duty calls," Drura gave the woman's hand one last squeeze, as she rushed to help Gear.


*********************************************************************************

"You okay, Insect Queen?" Ferro called as he watched his teammate grunt. Insect Queen had transformed into some sort of beetle, and she was rolling balls of soil and earth to shore up falling beams and walls.

"Thanks, but I've been much worse," Insect Queen wedged a ball just so. "When Robotica attacked... meds were the only things keeping me on my feet* then. This is a piece of pluberry pie compared to that... and call me Lonna." She began forming another ball in between her appendages. "I don't need to ask if you're full of energy, eh? Bet you could hold that wall up all day, though I won't test it."

Ferro laughed without mirth. "Yeah, one of the benefits of being an iron statue..."

Lonna looked up with a jerk of her head. "I'm sorry, Ferro. I read your file... I wish there was something we could do..."

Ferro shrugged. "Even with Brainiac 5, Element Lass and the White Witch on the team... it just doesn't seem to be in the cards. They can transmute me back to flesh, but nobody knows if I will survive. My body's pretty banged up, though it's not obvious from afar. But hey, at least I'm still alive, right?"

Lonna kept her eyes down. Everyone talked about how much time Ferro spent on missions, or in the VR room... especially there. At least technology had advanced enough that he could distract himself in there... maybe have a semblance of taste, touch and smell. Though he couldn't live in there forever, either. "I'm glad you're alive... Many people I know would have been much more bitter after going through what you did..."

"Thanks, and call me Andy." Andy turned to look at Lonna. "Believe me, I'm smiling under this mask...."

"I believe you. And I'm smiling as much as I can, even though this beetle doesn't have cheeks," Lonna quipped.

The two shared a grin even as Kid Quantum's voice came over the flight ring network. "We got another collapsing building two klicks over, Ferro, Insect Queen."

"Be right there, boss," Lonna replied cheerily.

***********************************************************************************

IB's notes:

1) Legion Worlds 4, Insect Queen was pushed to the brink during the Robotican invasion

Feel daunted by the length of this thread? You can also check out the Recap Thread to catch up!

VOLUME 4: MOVING FORWARD

Deep Space, on the edge of Affiliated Planets space

Echo, Troy Stewart of Earth (South Africa and Trinidad and Tobago); sound manipulation
Lume, of Silvan; energy being made of light
Particon, Jennifer Sanchez of Earth (India and Philippines); "hard light" energy casting and manipulation, disruption of energy flow
Star Boy, Thom Kallor of Xanthu; gravity manipulation

Uncanny Amazers

Night Girl, Lydda Jath of Kathoon; super-strength in darkness
Radion, Roy Travich of Earth (Italy and Madagascar); flight and emission of radiation

*************************************************************************************

"The trail is going fainter, somehow," Particon announced as she began to slow down. "Odd... I didn't expect Lume to run out of energy."

"Maybe you're the one running out," Radion said under his breath. Particon saw Echo about to snap back.

"No, the trail is literally fainter," Particon headed Echo off. Though both he and Night Girl were glaring daggers at Radion. "Can you sense anything with YOUR powers, Roy?"

Radion's eyes blazed. "I sense radiation in general, and there's way too much intergalactic background radiation here...

"Well, maybe we can... UMPH!" Particon felt herself thrown backwards, and her vision suddenly filled with a beehive of black hair. "Night Girl?"

"That rock almost took your head off!" Lydda exclaimed. She pointed at a small meteorite a few klicks ahead.

"It's giving off the same radiation as the asteroid!" Roy added, transfixed, as his eyes followed the meteorite.

"Let's see if I can slow it down," Star Boy pointed to the asteroid, and a purple glow emanated from it.

"Look out!" Echo pointed. More rocks were flying at them. "I can nudge them away with my powers... thanks to Star Boy's gravity powers carrying my soundwaves." With a wave of his hand, Echo changed the rock's trajectory enough that it missed the group.

"Great, now we have to deal with rocks attacking us from behind," Radion groused.

"Now, THAT I can help with," Jennifer smiled. She used her powers to form a pink energy wall behind them. "I can maintain this as we fly. If you lead the way, Thom...?"

Particon avoided looking at Radion as they followed Star Boy ahead.

More Legion, yay! Some thoughts:


I like this analogy!

I also like the neat way the Amazers have been given a closer link to the Legion while still maintaining their own identity, it makes sense and helps both parties...and Night Girl, Spectrum and Pete being on the same team seems like a nice Subs callout

The power display ending with Pete's quills spelling out words is classic Silver Age stuff, love it

Ambassador Jeryl, yay!!

I like the respect Dreamer gets from everyone; we all know Dreamy is formidable in any incarnation but usually that's balanced out by everyone seeing her as flighty and self-absorbed. It seemed like the reboot Nura had moved past that perception mostly in the end compared to original recipe Nura or even threeboot Nura.

Drura using benevolent bacteria is a good twist on her abilities, and it suits her personality to be a healer

Ferro and Insect Queen's little moment was cute!

Particon has had some good scenes here too....I barely remember her from the reboot so it's fun seeing her in use!

Looking forward to more funky magic asteroid times!

Thanks raz if this Amazers / Legion arrangement gets traction it might snowball… Lallor has their own team too after all

Yeah, I looked back at my notes and mostly it was Subs (in another continuity) who did well in the exam, held back only by their powers. Lydda adds some muscle, Ulu is a natural partner to her power wise, and Pete adds some more projectile type powers. That still leaves Staq, Ral and Dag on the Cadets though not Staq because the Amazers already have Atmos and Radion…

Glad you’re digging the little bits with the rest! And Anura’s performance in the Xanthu invasion and stopping Universo means most everyone takes her seriously now how could they not lol , they have to learn at some point

Hey IB, nice to see your team are still on Xanthu building metaphorical bridges.

As Raz said, Night Girl. Pete and Ulu joining the Amazers is a nice shout out to the Subs. I do kinds understand why the politician was thinking they're getting the Legion's cast-offs, but still those that do join the Amazers have been well trained and are eager to help so it shouldn't be too bad. Couple of really nice moments - Ulu colouring the air around Lydda so she can use her strength - have we ever seen that before as it is so obvious! Actually, when the Subs and Brainy took down the Super Assassins did he do it then? He really should have been doing it on every mission. Pete using his quills to spell out a message - cute! Nice interaction between Nura and Tom, talking about the troublesome Xitega, and an asteroid heading for Xanthu? Just as well they are there to deal with it

"This thing's bigger than Mordru's ego!" haha great line from Zoe. Which is kinda ironic given that she then went on to sense magic...

I liked that Drura is careful approaching people, and that she has benevolent bacteria she can use - very clever! And nice that there's Venusian bacteria to help, that's nice Silver Age sci-fi

Radion sniping is fun, we do love a catty exchange and again, it's understandable, if nowhere near appropriate.

Ferro and Insect Queen's chat was sweet, nice empathy from her and she handled what could be a really awkward conversation well. And, it was good to touch on how he is dealing with being stuck in his iron form.

Where's Lume? They are one of the few characters of yours that I know absolutely nothing about so am always eager to read more. Also, asteroids attacking the team from behind? I wonder who would be attacking Xanthu right now, and perhaps more pertinently, why? Looking forward to finding out

I love your stories IB, you have a deft touch with the characterisation and always throw in nice surprises that keep the stories moving forward. As ever, I'm eager for more, more, more!

That's the only time I can think of that it happened! You would think after Brainy showed them how effective they could be working together they'd have done it all the time, but I guess the Subs had a very long period of being treated like third-rate characters by DC so it wouldn't do to have them be too efficient...

Harbi, raz, you are Legion historians! I do remember Brainy's effective commandeering of the Subs.

re Lydda and Ulu, they are definitely natural teammates (just like Lydda and Tasmia). in my mind, it would be tough in a Legion to ensure they are always together... but on a smaller team with smaller scope like the Amazers, it is easier to schedule them together and also, if Lydda will be in space a lot, not as many issues sending her without Ulu

Harbi, you hit the nail right on the head - Lydda, Ulu and Pete may not have the most impressive powers, but the Legion made sure they only send those getting top marks otherwise.

leave it to Zoe to invoke Mordru's name and cause a magical disaster

indeed, we could use more catty, can't have everyone be too nice all the time

and don't worry, Lume is gonna get its share of screen time in the next few installments

thanks again as always for your support and comments !

I love Lume, yay! Such a good character concept created just as a throwaway gag!

I know right!! a being made entirely of light, why not? and besides Sun Boy (and depending how you look at the powers of Color Kid and Rainbow Girl), light is a power that has generally been missing from the Legion

Feel daunted by the length of this thread? You can also check out the Recap Thread to catch up!

VOLUME 4: MOVING FORWARD


Outside Xanth Prime, capital city of Xanthu

Nightwind, Berta Skye Harris of Earth (Iceland) and Enwa; wind and air manipulation, enhanced vision

Uncanny Amazers

Atmos, Marak Russen of Xanthu; nuclear energy blasts, flight, enhanced strength and durability

*********************************************************************************
"Well?" Atmos' tone was anything but friendly.

Nightwind ignored the Amazers' de facto leader, instead concentrating on feeling the wind currents around her. They were in a rural area outside the capital, and thankfully there weren't so many obstacles blocking the wind here. Atmos wasn't being intentionally acerbic, she told herself; he was just concerned about Xanthu. She opened her eyes and pointed. "There."

"About time." Atmos flew towards where Berta had pointed. She rolled her eyes and followed him down.

Acrid smoke billowed over an area almost as large as the old Legion headquarters on Earth. "Before the smoke gets in your eyes, let me," Berta called out to Atmos. With a wave of her hand, she blew the smoke away, revealing a crater. In the exact center, a chunk of asteroid lay, glowing softly.

"You're not getting away," Atmos growled as he pounced on the asteroid.

"Wait, remember what Star Boy - " before Berta could finish, the asteroid exploded into dozens of smaller particles. Atmos bellowed in rage as he crossed his arms in front of his face; then in pain as a few tore into his flesh. Fueled by instinct and adrenaline, Berta summoned a gale force wind to protect herself. Luckily, she was much further away, and only a few pebbles hit her.

She watched as the chunks of rock reformed into one bigger piece, and then ascended into the sky. Pulling her flight ring to her lips, she reported in. "Jaz, Nura, the piece we were tracing has gone skyward." Without waiting for a response, she flew towards Atmos. He was snarling even as he knelt, bloody gashes on his arms and torso. "Atmos, hold still, I have my medikit..."

"What has Xanthu done to deserve this?" Atmos spat, his fists clenched. "All I want is to see my world safe!"

"I wish I could say it will all be okay," Berta said softly, as she helped him sit down. "But I promise you, Atmos... the Legion will always stand by Xanthu."

Atmos set his jaw as Berta began to bandage his wounds.

*********************************************************************************

Gear, I.Z.O.R. of Linsnar; bio-mechanical techno-morphing

Uncanny Amazers

Porcupine Pete, Peter Dursin of Earth (Jamaica and Mexico); ejects quills from his body
Spectrum, Ulu Vakk of Lupra; changes the color of people and objects

*********************************************************************************

Gear flew towards Spectrum and Porcupine Pete, another half-dozen rescued victims lying in the hovering gurneys that protruded from his form. "Easy folks, the medical teams will be here any moment. I'm just going to bring you to our triage point." He gently lay everyone down. "Boys, I've monitored their vitals... all of them are in Category A."

"Perfect, thanks, Gear." As Pete helped the first victim from one of Gear's gurneys to a bed they had set up, Spectrum leaned closer to the victim - a young girl. "Hey there, I hope you like green, honey. I'm just going to turn your sleeve green so the medi-team will know you're one of the least injured, okay?"

The girl bit her lip. "I like pink, actually. Can I be pink instead?"

"Tell you what, I'll turn one sleeve green and another pink, would you like that?"

"That would be nice," the girl beamed at Ulu.

"That's the last of them," Pete stretched his back as he stepped back, taking in all the sentients who were resting peacefully. "I sure wish my powers were of more use here."

"It's not about the powers, Pete," Gear smiled as he retracted all his appendages. "Remember what Chuck always used to say..."

"It's all about the heart," Ulu, Pete and Gear said in unison, big grins on their faces.

*********************************************************************************

Kinetix, Zoe Saugin of Aleph; advanced telekinesis and animation of objects; affinity for magic

Uncanny Amazers

Kal Bodo of Xanthu; phrenology and psychometry activated upon touching another's head
Konk!, of Xanthu; detachable floating head, if she fails to reattach her head to her body, a new one with a different personality grows

*********************************************************************************

"Hey, Xanthusians!" Kal Bodo made sure the robo-camera broadcasting him was centered on his face. "No deaths reported so far; but we do have a lot of injured. If you can volunteer or give, stay glued to your Omnicoms for more details!"

"I have to admit," Kinetix said as she carefully used her telekinesis to feel around the edges of the piece of debris she was lifting. "I misjudged Kal - at first I thought he was collecting holos for his FaceScreen page, but he's pretty good at mobilizing people."

Konk! popped out of a hole in the rubble. "Yeah, well, those of us who don't have the best powers have to cultivate other talents," she winked. "Of course, my power's pretty cool - found an air pocket with ten sentients for ya! That way," she pointed her lips.

"Yeah, pretty useful alright," Zoe allowed herself a subtle grin as she trained her telekinetic field in the direction Konk! had pointed. Focusing, she found the edge of the air pocket and began to lift.

"My hour's almost up, let me just re-attach my head, then I'll be good to go again," Konk! floated over to where her headless body sat. Zoe shivered a bit; it looked too much like a beheaded corpse for her own taste. But, well, she had encountered stranger things in her time with the Legion, and...

She felt something on the edges of her telekinetic field. "Look out!" she called.

"What the-" Kal Bodo yelled as an object the size of a large Elva-bird whizzed meters away from him and towards his teammate. "No, Konk!!!!"

With barely a second to spare, Konk! separated her head from her body again - just in time to avoid being smashed by a glowing rock. "Oh sprock, that was close..." KonkI breathed.

"It's too fast!" Zoe instinctively tried to stretch her field after the rock, then thought better of it. Anyway, it was already angling towards the sky. Save the innocents buried here first, and ignore the pull of the rock, she scolded herself. Remember what the Anomaly did to you... and the Star of Akkos. Forget of trying to harness that asteroid's magic, we should just make sure it can't hurt anyone...*" She hoped that the rock would not hit anything on its way into space. Zoe used her flight ring to leave a message to Kid Quantum; then she focused harder, and began to lift the rubble. "We'll have you out of there almost as fast as XS can run, people!"


***********************************

IB's notes:

1) Because of exposure to the Space Anomaly, Kinetix retreated into herself, becoming almost catatonic (LSH 104-113; LSH 62-66). She lost her powers to the Star of Akkos too. (LSH Annual 6).

Feel daunted by the length of this thread? You can also check out the Recap Thread to catch up!

VOLUME 4: MOVING FORWARD

Deep Space, on the edge of Affiliated Planets space

Lume, of Silvan; energy being made of light

********************************************************************************

Lume was beginning to think it had been overconfident. It had worked hard at overcoming its almost-hereditary fear of the dark, but... this was the longest it had been alone in the blackness of space.

Imagine the stars... imagine they are your kind, Lume repeated the mantra that it had been taught in its early days with the Legion. With the original team missing, the call had gone wide and far, and Rebound and Nightwind and even RJ Brande himself had visited Lume on Silvan* - having been nominated by its homeworld upon their admission to the United Planets**, the Legion had wanted to invite Lume again. Truth be told, none of the Silvans had a clear concept of space travel; they had joined the UP on a whim, but really, what could other worlds have offered a species of light-based energy beings who produced their own sustenance?

Plenty, as Lume had found out. Regaled by stories of the Legion's triumphs, and of experiences on so many worlds and with so many species... and of being able to make the lives of those species better... Lume had signed up with a mix of eagerness and trepidation. And it had finally began conquering its fear of the dark by realizing it could make its own light, literally and figuratively.

After all, the darkness just represented the unknown. And the encouragement of its teammates filled Lume with confidence. It could...

"Oh!" Lume gasped as it felt something brush its cheek. Scolding itself, Lume shook out of its reverie, and almost wished it had not.

Stretching out ahead of it was a field of dust and rock. Dust and rock that emitted the same wavelength it had been following.

And more particles were coming to join the field.

Remembering its training, Lume took a chance. It solidified its form, and reached within itself to take out the flight ring it had suspended within its firefly-like form. "Particon, can you hear me? Can you track my coordinates? The asteroid is..."

Before Lume could finish, bits of rock began to pelt it. Letting out a cry, Lume activated its flight ring homing beacon even as it dodged madly, flying in a zigzag pattern. It doubted it could be physically harmed, but if its flight ring were destroyed... Getting its bearings, Lume desperately searched for the portion of space that seemed clear and bright, and flew towards it. Sparing a glance behind it, Lume relaxed as it saw the rock seem to pause.

It looked forward, determined to pour on the speed while maintaining its humanoid form so its flight ring signal would be stronger. If it could reach its top speed...

And then, Lume felt itself slam into something hard and rough. No! It felt its particles refract, and the ring slip from its grasp! It tried to pull itself together, but it felt its particles bounce around uncontrollably...

... and split up like this, it could not even see what was causing it to fall apart.

All it could do was hope that its signal had gone out, and trust in its teammates to come save it.

**********************************

IB's notes:

1) An untold story set during Volume 1 of this fic! Check out the recap for more backstory.

2) Lume first appeared in LSH 66, where it declined to join the Legion upon learning that it had to travel through the darkness of space to do so.

Hey IB, thanks for the ping!

Loving the short snips above, especially Berta dealing with Atmos. Hopefully he comes to an epiphany soon and realises it isn't all about him is it bad that I kinda smiled when he got hurt?

Ulu dealing with the child was really sweet. It's good to see these small moments in the middle of all the chaos, that's what the Legion should represent really isn't it? "It's all about the heart," indeed! Well said.

Konk always freaked me out tbh, the idea of a floating head is really repulsive (to me, anyway) but you have used them well here, and Zoe helping and prioritising the trapped civilians shows how much she has grown too.

You have a skill at capturing the character's personalities that doesn't jar or beat the reader over the head, it's very nice to read.

Lume! Yay! My new favourite I think - a being scared of the dark that's made of light, it's quite brilliant (sorry, bad pun) as character flaws go. And the flight ring being kept inside it's body was a good visual. Noticed you call Lume 'him' right at the end, was this intentional, only it stood out against the gender neutral pronouns you used earlier regarding them?

Great stuff, you carry on building the excitement and mystery while highlighting the personalities in play - well done!

Of course, it does mean I'm sat here waiting for more, more and more!

hi Harbi, thanks again for your read & review! appreciate it!

yeah, Atmos is a bit of a jerk eh? I'm trying to have him as demanding rather than jerky for the sake of jerkiness... and he can take a hit, so smile away when he gets a bit hurt

yeah, Konk! was always a bit odd. also, how does she headbutt people without getting hurt, is her head unusually hard? questions, questions...

and indeed, I love having the Legion as a symbol of hope, so they should generally be nice to the people they work with

Re Lume, oops! the "him" was a mistake, when I first brought Lume in I determined that Lume would remain gender-neutral (as a light-based energy being :p). but my brain keeps suggesting that Lume should be gendered, which is not correct. bad brain! glad you are liking Lume, what a treat!

glad you're hooked, I will do my best to wrap this asteroid bit up soon

Yay, I have been looking forward to Lume's bit - some thoughts!

You gotta feel for Atmos, reboot Xanthu has really been through it! Even so, Berta has got way more patience dealing with him than I would...

Pete having Jamaican and Mexican heritage is a fun background bit - I like how you give the Earth heroes different nationalities

Ulu's bit with the little girl was nice...good to see a situation where he's logically useful as well! (PS it looks like you accidentally put Kal in this section's roll call as well as the next!)

I liked Konk's usefulness here as well - and Zoe having to remind herself about her priorities is a nice call back to her past.

Poor Lume! That was a good character piece - Lume's bravery comes across quite well, I can see how the darkness of outer space would be challenging for a light creature!

re: accidentally calling Lume "he" - I do this with Sojurn and Slug all the time hahaha....I have a friend who came out as non-binary a few years ago, so I wanted to write some gender-neutral characters to get myself used to not falling back on gendered pronouns as the default in real life, but it shows how ingrained it is that it still trips us up sometimes!

thanks raz!! glad you're digging it all!

Yeah, I was trying not to make Atmos too unlikable... he's still a total jerk BUT at least he has a reason (unacceptable though it might be) for being so lol

I really do need to do something more about the Earth heroes' nationalities though i have been thinking about it, I expect Earth should have changed a lot in 1000 years, so referring to how modern-day Earth people would behave doesn't seem quite right

oops thanks for the catch, gonna go clean up the roll calls

and glad Lume is coming across well, though it's not an original character, it is the most blank slate one of my original new Legionnaires and thanks for the commiserations re how ingrained gendered language is! yeah,it takes a lot of effort sometimes, and I'm grateful for those in real life who are patient enough about it!

I get what you mean, global culture would probably be a lot more homogenised in the Legion's future (or maybe changed completely with all the wars in between now and then)...but I think for the sake of adding some diversity and some distinct background bits for different characters it's a good idea to not just default to nearly everyone being white.

And even though DC's alien worlds suffer from the same thing most other sci-fi worlds do, where everyone on the planet looks the same and acts the same, we still have stuff like the Yakka-Mahor on Talok VIII and the allusion to different types of Khund subcultures occasionally (eg: sometimes we see Khund women being treated like property and sometimes they're equal to men), so I don't think it's a stretch that individual components of the many different subcultures on Earth would carry on in some form for another 1000 years

thanks for brainstorming with me, raz you've convinced me to try to add some more cultural bits, beyond just having them come from different areas of Earth

Feel daunted by the length of this thread? You can also check out the Recap Thread to catch up!

VOLUME 4: MOVING FORWARD

Metropolis, Earthgov offices

Evert Manning sighed as he locked his console screen and stood up. 47 new messages overnight, and he had stayed up late until 8pm to clean his inbox... join Earthgov, his dad had said. Get paid well AND get a sexy job that would bring in the babes... and here he was, 35 years old, newly single and still renting with 3 roommates...

He resisted the urge to slam his Omnicom on his desk, and instead used his energy to stomp his boots hard as he walked out of the offices. Some fresh air would do him good.

Walking out into the sunlight, he sighed. If only he had been born rich, or won the lottery...

"Hey, handsome, you don't happen to know where the Bureau of Archeology is, do you?"

Evert jerked up to see a vision of loveliness staring at him. She was short of breathtakingly beautiful, but certainly very cute and attractive and appealing, with her short-cropped brown hair and lilac-colored eyes. She peered at him with a smile suggesting she had ideas. "Three-legged skitterer got your tongue, big boy?"

"I... I... I... I work for them," Evert stammered.

"Wonderful, then you can show me where the offices are. I'm Orchid Sapphire, by the way."

Evert instantly forgot how terrible his life was, and stood up straight, chest out. "This way, Miss Sapphire." The whole time they walked to the office, his mind flashed with visions of him wooing Orchid, and the life they would build together.

He never noticed the dossiers and files moving unseen around him, or the discreet swiping on his Omnicom screen. And when Orchid excused herself with a wink and a nod, saying "well, if only I were single, I would ask you out... but really, a looker like you has great things going for him." And Evert had resolved to look for a better job, go to the gym again, and finally ask out that cute neighbor of his...

************************************************************************************

Rimbor

Scarlett Blood looked up from her perch at the bar of the Rowdy Rough Bunch tavern. "I don't know who you're talking about, princess," she sneered.

The red-headed cherub in front of her tittered. "Oh, really? I thought Luonel Burdo was well-known around these parts. After all, he IS a Legionnaire's father. Apparition? Tinya Wazzo?"

Scarlett spat. "Yeah, and after it became known he fathered someone who put many Rimborians away, he dared not show his face around here anymore."

"Ah, a shame. I was hoping to make his acquaintance. After all, he seemed like a man who knew many things, or many beings, such as the Luck Lords."

Scarlett slammed a bottle of silverale on the bar. "You best not be talking about beings like that here, sugar, lest you find a tattoo carved into your pretty face."

"Oh," the red-head made a show of hiding her face behind her hands. "I guess I'd better take my leave then, that wouldn't do. Thank you, Miss Scarlett.

Scarlett rolled her eyes as the little tramp sashayed out her door.

************************************************************************************

Ventura

The Luck Lord called Kairos glared at his quarters. He had been confined there for the past two months, in penance for his failure on Rimbor. But it had not been his fault... someone, something, must have stolen the Sphere of Evanescence from him after he had recovered it from that cursed Luonel Burdo!**

Yet his brethren had not believed him, and now he must meditate to rid himself of any impulse of betraying their order, for the next four months...

He was going mad.

He stared at the ceiling, eye unblinking. If only...

He paused at the movement out of the corner of his eye. What...

He turned to stare at the corner of his room. He could have sworn...

He blinked his eye. This solitude was driving him crazy.

Sighing, he pulled out his notebook and began to scribble. Paper was scarce in this century, but drawing helped him forget the tedium. Sighing, he once again sketched Burdo's face, and imagined himself stabbing that squaj over and over....

***************************************************************************************

Legion World

Apparition, Tinya Wazzo of Bgztl; intangibility
Chameleon, Reep Daggle of Durla; shapeshifting
Invisible Kid, Lyle Norg of Earth (Australia and Israel); invisibility
Kinetix, Zoe Saugin of Aleph; advanced telekinesis and animation of objects; affinity for magic
Sensor, Jeka Wynzorr of Orando; sensory manipulation
Spider-Girl, Sussa Paka of Luna; prehensile hair
Triad, Luornu Durgo of Cargg; triplication
Violet, Salu Digby of Imsk; shrinks and grows own body

****************************************

"I wish I could do more, gang," Kinetix shook her head. She was still on Xanthu, but was on a call to Legion World. "But all I know is I felt a surge of magic when that asteroid suddenly went sprocking crazy. I wish I had been able to save a sample, but my telekinetic fields couldn't detect even a stray pebble... Whatever magic is animating that thing, it is powerful and thorough!"

Chameleon sighed as he slumped in his seat. Beside him, Triad and Invisible Kid both looked thoughtful. "It can't be helped, Zoe. If even your telekinesis could not stop it, it must be powerful indeed."

"Can't Mysa come over and take a look?" Zoe asked.

"She's on a mission to Avalon now," Triad replied. "I've asked Theena to contact her as soon as she's reachable, but Avalon's unique atmosphere dulls outside transmissions..."

"Okay, well, I will keep looking, and if I find anything I'll let you know. Say hi to Vi for me," Zoe winked. As the others waved back, she cut the transmission.

Invisible Kid stood up and began to pace. "We've got the whole Espionage Squad searching, but we're not magical experts, after all. And neither is Brainy; I've asked him to take a look but he hasn't come up with anything... yet."

"I just wish our Earthgov jaunt had turned up more," Triad sighed. "Part of me DID enjoy flirting with that poor mook, but all we could find out was that a few other magical objects across the galaxy have been vanishing..."

"Which adds to the others we already know about, though we can't figure out a pattern other than they are all magical," Invisible Kid finished, a touch of frustration in his voice.

"And we found nothing with the Luck Lords, either." Everyone turned to see Apparition phasing through the wall of the meeting room.

Beside her, Violet grew to normal height. "All we really learned was that Burdo was using a device to hide himself; that the Luck Lords tried to recover it, but somehow lost it again."

"And it's not with that man," Apparition spat. "He's been searched thoroughly on Takron-Galtos; and he's too much of a weakling coward to not use it to his advantage if he could. He doesn't have it."

Triad gently squeezed Apparition's shoulder in support. "Guess we lucked out, unless our mission to Rimbor..."

"Sadly, we didn't learn much, either." Everyone turned to see Sensor and Spider-Girl entering. Spider-Girl quickly sat down, put her feet up, and used her hair to grab a Silverale; she was already very comfortable and secure despite being newly-inducted to the Espionage Squad. "I tried all my contacts on the Rimborian black market. Zip, nobody knows anything about trade in magical artifacts."

"And I didn't detect any stray thoughts or guilty feelings, despite asking around," Sensor sighed as she coiled her lower body to relax. At least she could still do that in her new form, though she always struggled with how to fold her arms. "Most sentients on Rimbor are concerned with tangible credits, not glowy objects."

Chameleon joined his fingers in front of his lips. "I hope Mysa's mission ends soon... if Star Boy's team can catch that asteroid, maybe she can do something to protect it..." He peered once more at the map the Squad was maintaining of all known magical object thefts in the past six months. "Someone is collecting these artifacts... but for what?"

"We'll find out, Cham, somehow," Violet said quietly. Nobody else said anything, as they stared at the map that was growing with new reports every week.

****************************************
IB's notes:

1) See these posts from earlier in Volume 4, for the story of Luonel Burdo and the Luck Lords. In summary, Burdo was using the Sphere of Evanescence to hide out from justice, but the Legion caught him anyway

Feel daunted by the length of this thread? You can also check out the Recap Thread to catch up!

VOLUME 4: MOVING FORWARD

Deep Space, on the edge of Affiliated Planets space

Brainiac 5, Querl Dox of Colu; 12th level intelligence and force field powers
Echo, Troy Stewart of Earth (South Africa and Trinidad and Tobago); sound manipulation
Element Lass, Candi "Princess" Pyponte-LeParc III of Xanthu; transmutation
Lume, of Silvan; energy being made of light
Particon, Jennifer Sanchez of Earth (India and Philippines); "hard light" energy casting and manipulation, disruption of energy flow
Shikari Lonestar of the Kwai; pathfinding, armored skin and claws allowing for flight and survival in space
Star Boy, Thom Kallor of Xanthu; gravity manipulation

Uncanny Amazers

Night Girl, Lydda Jath of Kathoon; super-strength in darkness
Radion, Roy Travich of Earth (Italy and Madagascar); flight and emission of radiation

*************************************************************************************

"If we don't find Lume and the asteroid in 15 more minutes, we really should think about space survival," Echo mused as they followed Star Boy, who in turn followed the tiny asteroid caught in his gravity field. "I can order a Threshold and have a cruiser delivered to us."

"Good thinking, Troy," Night Girl smiled at him. They hadn't been particularly close during their Legion Cadet days, but they had enjoyed working together - and Troy was one of those who had checked in on her after the first Cadet graduation test, and sat down with and encouraged her while she was figuring out what to do. Nearly everyone had been happy for him getting onto the main team, despite not making it themselves.

"We should have done it earlier," Radion muttered.

"And we would have, if following Lume's trail hadn't been so crucial," Echo said civilly but with a very small edge in his voice. Troy was the epitome of cooperation and teamwork, and he could not stand those who were difficult to work with on purpose. "And right now, even with Star Boy slowing down that piece, it's still moving rather fast. If we do call a Threshold, we have to calculate our trajectory so it opens a reasonable distance in front of us, without swallowing the piece up..."

"Maybe you can help me with that, Roy?" Lydda looked at her new teammate.

"You're the one with the scientist background," Roy waved dismissively.

I'm really sorry about this, Lydda sent to Troy and to Particon. Our teams should be working better together, technically we are linked now...

My joining the Legion has contributed to this, Jennifer sent back. I'll have a talk with him after this is done... he's snippy but I hope he can be professional enough on this mission

He'd better, Troy responded. He's lucky Wildfire or Umbra aren't here...

"Uh, gang? I think we have our work cut out for us." Everyone turned to see what Star Boy was referring to.

"What exactly are we seeing?" Lydda gasped.

"It... it..." Troy was at a loss for words. A swirling mass of rocks was rotating slowly around a glowing, central disc. "It looks like... a planetoid is forming."

"Of course," Lydda pointed at the rotating disc. "That could explain why the asteroids are flying in this direction!" As if to prove her point, a couple more rocks smashed into Particon's energy shield and tumbled towards the big disc.

"But where's Lume?" Particon looked around. "I'm trying to get a read on hi- I mean, it - but it's tough with all the heat and light around here."

"This is a bit beyond us. I'm calling for help. Maybe we can get Shikari or Brainiac 5 or the White Witch here, or even all three. Control, I need..."

"Look out!" Star Boy called. "I can feel the gravity changes, we're..." Before he could finish, some rocks flew at the group, and the inner disc brightened. Thanks to Thom's warning, Lydda yanked Troy out of the way in time.

"Thanks for the save, Lydda," Troy gasped. "But how are you doing with the brightness?"

"The light is sapping my strength," Lydda exclaimed. "I can already feel myself weakening!"

"I've got you," Jennifer enclosed the group in a rounded shield. "This won't hold long though; it's already a bit of a stretch to make more than simple shapes with my powers; a sphere is a bit much."

Thankfully, Roy bit his lip this time. "I'll help by absorbing some of the radiation around us."

Thom's eyes glowed as well. "And I'll try to deflect as many of these things as I can."

"And I've made contact with Brainiac 5," Troy continued. "Videofeed on. Do you have enough information? I'm simultaneously checking where we are on the starmaps to see if that can tell us anything."

"Already done," Querl replied brusquely. "Good thinking, though," he added kindly. "I'm afraid this is beyond us for the moment. I suggest you leave right now, things are going to become very uncomfortable there."

"But I can use my powers to stop this!" Thom protested.

"You almost died keeping Warworld and Legion World from disrupting Earth's orbit," Querl replied flatly*. "Stopping a planet from forming will not only be more taxing, but your body is not designed to withstand the amounts of light and heat here." As he spoke, a Threshold opened in front of them. Shikari, Element Lass and another Kwai flew through.

"We will go find Light Legion," Shikari said; her voice said she was smiling, but her facial expressions could not be seen through her Kwai armor-skin. "I'm going with," Element Lass waved. "My crystal form should protect me. But do you want me to create an inertron shield for you first?"

"No, I think we'd better leave and regroup instead," Troy sighed. "I don't like it either, Thom, but... we can't just go willy-nilly into this. I mean, I can tell you how planets form, but I would not know how to actually run or stop the process!"

"Fine," Thom said reluctantly as he shook the second Kwai's hand. "Let's go."

"Toodles, then," Candi said cheerfully as she followed Shikari closer to the floating disc.

***********************************************************************************

Lume had lost track of time. How long had it been bouncing here, in its prison? Certainly not eons, or even years, as it reckoned the time. But it had certainly been a while. It had tried to use its flight ring, but the space was not large enough to manifest its humanoid form, and it could not reach a signal...

Suddenly and blessedly, the wall in front of it dissolved.

"Oh, you poor thing!" Element Lass' concerned face appeared, gleaming in the light.

"It is so good to see you. Thank you for freeing me!" Lume gasped as it turned humanoid again, and wore its flight ring once more. "It is so nice to see some light that I don't produce."

"It won't be nice for long," Shikari replied, not unkindly; though she looked so stern in her armored skin. "We have to leave before it becomes uninhabitable."

"You must be tired. Let me help you." Element Lass transmuted an intertron chain out of free-floating hydrogen atoms. "Grab hold, dear, and let my flight ring do the work."

Lume gratefully turned humanoid again, and clutched at the chain as Element Lass pulled him to safety.

***********************************************************************************

Brainiac 5 was hard at work, all twelve of his thought tracks running simultaneously. Pushing the disaster relief on Xanthu out of his mind, he made contact with Zaron Lux. The former Legion Cadet had refused the last test, and had instead passed the program otherwise, joining the United Planets' Disaster Coordination Office.

"Salutations, Brainiac 5," Zaron greeted Querl with respect. "I take it all has gone well on Xanthu?"

"Indeed, and gratitude once more for your process review, which optimized results by 36.78%," Querl replied with a nod. "But I am calling now on another topic. I just sent you a briefing packet."

Zaron's eyes widened ever-so-slightly, the only visible sign of surprise. "Well, my part in this is clear. I will ensure no traffic crosses that region of space, and the worlds in the area are warned." Tapping quickly on the control panel in front of him, he sighed. "I do dislike magic, don't you?"

"Indeed. Insufferably unpredictable," Querl replied. The two Coluans exchanged a nod, then ended the call.

Querl rubbed his temples for a moment, as he watched the scene in front of him. How could science ever have predicted this?

And if they didn't manage the process carefully, the planet Dryad** would reform in a section of space that had acclimatized and adapted to its lack of gravity. For any life forms and planetary bodies caught near it, the process would be thoroughly unfavorable.

***********************************************************************************

IB's notes:

1) Legion 13-14, when Warworld and Legion World, among others, tried to break the shield Robotica erected around Earth

2) Dryad was destroyed by the Earth Elemental in Legionnaires 71-74

Feel daunted by the length of this thread? You can also check out the Recap Thread to catch up!

VOLUME 4: MOVING FORWARD

New Shanghai

Inferno, Dirk Morgna of Earth (USA and Russia); pyrokinesis, can see heat signatures
White Witch, Mysa of Zarrox; sorcery

Dragonmage, Xao Jin of New Shanghai (Earth colony); sorcery (Reserve Legionnaire)

**************************************************************

Dragonmage looked up from his notes, and frowned at the knock on his door. It had taken most of his concentration to draw up the lesson plans for the children he would be teaching next week. Ever since that accursed Mordru had finally been stopped*, the magical community had slowly been rebuilding*. After Xao's incarceration had ended, he had slowly and diligently rebuilt his connections with the nascent grouping. It had been a long road to regain their trust; after all, he had ignored warnings that would have prevented unleashing much misfortune on the galaxy.

Walking swiftly, he crossed his small, messy studio apartment and yanked the door open. "Yes, I'm a little bit busy- oh!"

"I can tell, Xao." The Lady Mysa walked in, her smile lighting up her face. "You haven't replied to my messages or calls today."

"It is such a pleasant surprise to see you," Xao swept her up in a hug. "I thought you weren't off-duty until two days from now? Heavens, I haven't cleaned up, and I'm not ready to make my special noodles for dinner. Let me get you some tea!"

"Sadly, I'm here on business," Mysa said as patted Xao on the back.

"We need your help." Xao blanched a bit to see Dirk Morgna standing in the doorway.

"Don't worry, I won't try to hit you this time," the red-head said flatly. "I've forgiven you, even if I hear you haven't forgiven yourself."**

Xao bowed down in front of Dirk. "I apologize again, I..."

"You already apologized, Dragonmage," Dirk cut him off, though not heatedly. "As I said, I've forgiven you. I volunteered to come along to help show you that."

Mysa gently placed herself between the two men. "We've come to ask for your help, Xao. Some force is reforming the planet Dryad, and it is beyond my immediate understanding of magic."

"Dryad? I still have nightmares of it... is it a chance to atone for my sins?" Xao looked up, then down again. "But you were my teacher - if you do not understand it, how can I?"

"We can figure it out together, Xao," Mysa smiled. "We are part of a Legion, after all."

"And it's a chance to do something concrete," Dirk added. "So... shall I call a Threshold?"

"Please. I just need five minutes." Xao quickly ran to get dressed. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest. He had heard of the Legion's work on Xanthu and on Gil'd; if they could restore Dryad it would wash away the biggest of his sins.

**************************************************************


Xanthu

Calorie Queen, Taryn Loy of Bismoll; consume and digest all forms of matter, conversion of digested matter into super-strength
Karate Kid, Val Armorr of Omega Colony; skilled martial artist
Timber Wolf, Brin Londo of Zuun; enhanced speed, strength, durability, senses and regenerative powers
Ultra Boy, Jo Nah of Rimbor; enhanced speed, strength, invulnerability, vision powers and flight, but can only use one power at a time
XS, Jenni Ognats of Aarok; super-speed

Cannus of Anthropologia; skilled tracker, canine senses and abilities (former Legion Cadet)

**************************************************************

Karate Kid watched as several of their teammates vanished through the Threshold. The situation with Dryad meant that some of their talents were more needed in space; in return, others among them had come here.

"Nightwind wants me to distribute emergency rations. Catch ya later!" XS waved as she ran off.

"We're on search and rescue," Timber Wolf motioned for Cannus to follow him. "Don't worry, you won't have to fight anyone here."

"Rhew! Ri'm rad I rade rhis recision!" Cannus barked as he bounded off after Timber Wolf. Having failed to gain Legion membership twice*** for cowardice, Cannus had been offered a permanent spot doing search & rescue. After all, the Kwai pathfinders specialized in finding paths, but they needed an inkling of what they were looking for; and in some environments, a sharp nose and ears were more useful.

Calorie Queen shook her head as she looked at the spittle Cannus left on the ground. "I can eat that, but I won't," she said with distaste. "Well, I'm off to help clear some rubble. Good thing I'm feeling a tad hungry..."

"And..." Ultra Boy seemed puzzled as he looked at his Omnicom. "Hm, looks like they need my flash vision to weld some pipes that burst. Okay, then..." Switching to super-speed, Jo flew off.

"Wow, they are sooo cool." Karate Kid turned to see a young teen watching his teammates fly off with awe. The teen fixed her eyes on Val. "And what do you do?"

"My name is Karate Kid..." Val began.

"Oh... you're the one who punches things." The teen appeared disappointed. "No super-strength or speed or stuff like that?"

"I do the best I can," Val smiled peacefully.

"I guess that's better than nothing... ow..." The teen held her arm forlornly.

"Want me to take a look?" The teen hesitated, then nodded. Val gently felt her arm. "Nothing seems to be broken... but I sense a little muscle pain. Let me just do this..." He gently twisted the teen's arm, and she gasped. Looking down in surprise, she flexed her arm back and forth. "Wow! I feel all better!"

"Just a little applied martial arts knowledge," Val smiled. "I do more than just punch things, you know."

**************************************************************

IB's notes:

1) Mordru was stopped in Legionnaires 48-50. We see other sorcerers briefly in Legionnaires 71-74, on Zarrox. Dragonmage was imprisoned after turning himself in, for his role in inadvertently freeing the four Elementals of Disaster, who caused widespread death and destruction before being defeated.

2) Dirk Morgna was possessed by the freed Fire Elemental, and was the only one of the four Elemental hosts to survive. He was also left with heat-signature vision instead of his normal vision, though he has since become able to switch between both visions at will (see Volume 2).

3) First in Legionnaires 43; second in VVolume 4!

Feel daunted by the length of this thread? You can also check out the Recap Thread to catch up!

VOLUME 4: MOVING FORWARD

Deep Space, amid the ruins of the planet Dryad

Babbage, I-45ENG/Nth Series of Robotica; combat mechanoid
Blizzard, Brek Bannin of Tharr; cold projection
Brainiac 5, Querl Dox of Colu; 12th level intelligence and force field powers
Chemical Kid, Condo Arlik of Phlon; controls chemical reactions
Dreamer, Nura Nal of Naltor; precognition
Element Lass, Candi "Princess" Pyponte-LeParc III of Xanthu; transmutation
Gates, Ti'julk Mr'asz of Vyrga; opens teleportation disks
Gear, I.Z.O.R. of Linsnar; bio-mechanical techno-morphing
Gravity, Tel Vole of Earth (Cambodia and Thailand); gravity manipulation
Inferno, Dirk Morgna of Earth (USA and Russia); pyrokinesis, can see heat signatures
Kid Quantum II, Jazmin Cullen of Xanthu; time manipulation. Current Legion leader.
Kinetix, Zoe Saugin of Aleph; advanced telekinesis and animation of objects
Lume, of Silvan; energy being made of light
Mentalla, Delya Castil of Titan; telepathic control of others' physical functions.
M'Onel, Lar Gand of Daxam; enhanced speed, strength, invulnerability, vision powers, flight
Particon, Jennifer Sanchez of Earth (India and Philippines); "hard light" energy casting and manipulation, disruption of energy flow
Saturn Girl, Imra Ardeen of Titan; telepathy
Shikari Lonestar of the Kwai; pathfinding, armored skin and claws allowing for flight and survival in space
Star Boy, Thom Kallor of Xanthu; gravity manipulation
Umbra, Tasmia Mallor of Talok VIII; darkfield casting
White Witch, Mysa of Zarrox; sorcery
Wildfire, Drake Burroughs (energy gestalt of two beings); anti-energy being

Radion, Roy Travich of Earth (Italy and Madagascar); flight and emission of radiation (Uncanny Amazer)

Sizzle, Teela Spuunvll of Abaddonus; absorbs and redirects energy (Legion Cadet)
Tellus, Ganglios of Hykraius; telepathy and telekinesis (Legion Cadet)

Dragonmage, Xao Jin of New Shanghai (Earth colony); sorcery (Reserve Legionnaire)

**************************************************************

"Wow, I sure didn't expect to see a planet re-forming when I woke up today," Blizzard whispered to Wildfire as they exited the Threshold. "Echo was sooo mad that he had to go help out on Xanthu instead of watching this!"

"I didn't expect you to wake up today, considering how much you drank at the wedding," Wildfire made a show of poking Brek in the ribs to indicate he was joking.

"Hey, at least I didn't take my shirt off and dance on the table," Brek deflected by pointing at Gravity. Tel scowled for a moment, then remembered his husband Jed's words: that he'd better not take himself too seriously, lest his new Legionnaire teammates think he had no sense of humor. He already had developed a bit of that reputation during his Cadet days, and Jed had told him multiple times that he should not take jokes as an insult to his own dignity. "Well, still better than what Comet Queen and Retro got up to in the comfort room..."

All three chuckled amongst themselves, then fell silent as Kid Quantum II cleared her throat. "Okay, gang, let's focus and do this quickly. After all, we had to recall Saturn Girl from her honeymoon just for this; and even more importantly, if we don't get it right this region of space will destabilize. Brainiac 5 gets to call the shots."

"Thank you, Kid Quantum. And for not calling me Brainy," Querl said drily. "Shikari?"

"This spot is ideal, Smart Legion," Shikari armored down, as if to prove her declaration. Her pathfinding sense remained in overdrive though, and she willed herself to ignore the paths of all the bits of rock around her. "It should fit your requirements - close enough to observe this phenomenon, but far away enough to be safe from it."

Like a well-oiled machine, the Legionnaires sprang into action. Most of those present had been recalled from other missions, or even from being off-duty, due to the momentousness of the occasion. And those who had come from Xanthu had in turn been replaced by many others to help with the relief efforts there.

Gear morphed part of himself into an instrument-board, where Brainiac 5 took his place. "Your bio-morphing physiology is quite remarkable. The conservation of space going on there..." Querl commented. "Why Brainy, you DO like me for my body," Gear teased.

Hooking itself into Gear's instruments, Babbage lent its prodigious data-processing capacity to the displays. "There is a large amount of data to process, but together we should manage. And together, we only take 10% of the volume we would otherwise need."

Kinetix surrounded the group in a telekinetic field. Element Lass reinforced it with her own powers, adding a translucent layer of titanium/inertron; she did thin a section of it, still thick enough to protect against the worst of the radiation and energy around them, but not enough to block out visual input from outside. Brainiac 5's force field was arguably tougher, but the more of his concentration they could free up, the better.

Umbra raised her hands and cloaked the team in her darkfield, to add even more protection. She carefully ensured that the front of Kinetix's telekinetic sphere was clear. "Is this enough space for you, Brainiac?" At Querl's nod, she relaxed a bit, though still remained vigilant.

Stationing themselves at the edges of the field, Lume, Inferno and Radion opened themselves up individually to the kinds of energy they controlled. They began to absorb light, heat and radiation, respectively, to allow their colleagues to work safely. Despite its ordeal, Lume had insisted on joining this endeavour. Each of the three energy manipulators pointed a hand to Particon and fired; none could store this pent-up energy safely for very long. Particon had created an energy funnel to feed their energy into Wildfire. In turn, Wildfire's anti-energy form absorbed the combined energy; compared to his teammates, he could do so for far longer and in larger quantities. Focusing, he redirected everything away from the team.

Sizzle sighed impatiently as she watched Wildfire. She understood that she was there as back-up; Particon would find it difficult to parse two different streams of energy, and naturally Wildfire had a higher threshold than her own physical form did. She comforted herself with the thought that at least HE could not convert energy into something else. Looking around for someone to chat with, she saw everyone else was concentrating or discussing. Sighing, she flew towards Wildfire.

"Hey, kid, don't feel down," Drake nodded at her. "I'll need a break soon, so you'll get your turn, k?" Sizzle smiled back in gratitude.

Sitting down so he could concentrate better, Blizzard began to cool the space they worked in. Space was generally already quite cold, but the amount of light and heat being thrown out by the spinning disc in front of them was enormous. He was glad he could contribute to this mission in space; he closed his eyes so he could focus on ensuring he kept things at just the right temperature.

Outside the field, M'Onel busied himself keeping watch for rocks. Most pelted his invulnerable form harmlessly; but every so often, a rather large or fast-moving one would careen towards them. Those would be met with a the Daxamite catching them and throwing them back into the swirling disc. Too bad Andromeda couldn't be recalled to join them; and that Night Girl had to return to Xanthu as there was too much light for her powers here. But he figured that anything he might miss, his teammates could easily handle.

As if to prove his point, Shikari flew beside him. "Want some company? I am not strong enough to destroy the bigger ones, but these smaller ones..." She quickly slashed a piece about the size of a human head in half.

"The more the merrier, Shikari," M'Onel smiled as he caught a much larger piece, that was about the size of a Legion cruiser.

Within the field, Chemical Kid let himself tune in to the reactions happening in front of him. "I'm not completely sure what I need to look for, Brainiac..." Condo began.

"I will guide you," Querl just said. Condo waited, then sighed as Querl remained silent.

"Don't worry, dear," Candi whispered to him. Unlike with Kinetix, who needed to maintain her concentration, Candi could transmute items and break off. "I don't quite know what to do either; but I've worked with Brainy enough to know he will tell us what is needed."

"I am not called Brainy," Querl said almost automatically. "Candi is right; don't worry, I will direct you as and when it is needed. But for now, please study the list of gaseous reactions and trace elements I have sent to your Omnicoms, and their allowable rates and levels. If any come within 15% of breaching those levels, please alert me at once. Now please excuse me..."

Turning to Gravity and Star Boy, Querl instructed them on how to maintain the gravity at a constant around them. "It's great working with you, Star Boy," Tel smiled at his muscular teammate. Thom Kallor was one of the few Legion men that both Tel and Jed agreed was among the most attractive. Even Particon and Insect Queen, despite being attracted to females, had agreed that Thom was, by all standards, rather dashing.

"Likewise. There's definitely space for two gravity-controlling heroes on the team," Thom smiled back. Tel resisted biting his lip; oh, Jed would be so envious and a little bit jealous! And when Jed was a little bit jealous, well, Tel knew their next romp would be even more intense.

That left Gates, Dreamer, Kid Quantum, Mentalla, Saturn Girl, White Witch, Tellus and Dragonmage to gather around Brainiac 5.

"So, Brainiac. Do I slow this thing down? Speed it up?" Kid Quantum asked. "What are the chances of a bad outcome from all of this?"

"Still not possible to compute," Brainiac 5 said with a touch of impatience. "Planets usually take millions of years to form, you know that."

"Which is why this speed is unnatural," Gates sounded testy. Part of it was the waiting; his teleportation was useful, but he hated being on call, just waiting until someone told him to do something. But because it was Brainiac 5, he held his tongue; Querl knew what he was doing. He would not keep silent on other things, though. "When will sentients learn to leave things well enough alone!"

"That's the thing, Gates," Saturn Girl's eyes glowed pink even as she spoke. Beside her, Mentalla's eyes glowed a pale green; the two Titanians had linked. Though Imra had by far the greater range - after all, Mentalla specialized in controlling physical functions - she was grateful for Delya boosting her own abilities. "I can't say that there IS a sentience behind this! Can you sense anything, Tellus?"

Tellus floated uncertainly beside Imra. The Hykraian Cadet knew he was here because his telepathy was more effective than Saturn Girl's when it came to lower-level, non-sentient life. And this extended generally to all his interactions; it was just so much easier to communicate with animal life than it was to other sentients. It frustrated him that he could not be certain about what he was sensing now. "There is... something... here. But I cannot identify it. It is... unlike... any other thing I have encountered..."

"I wish I could help," Dreamer looked disturbed. "I've been skimming the future, but I think magic is my weakness, as it is most of ours. I can see physical things, but..." She paused for a moment, appearing confused; then she opened her eyes with sharpness. "Gates, there is a rock that M'Onel won't reach in time over there. Would you please...?"

"Say no more!" Eager to finally do something, Gates opened a portal where Dreamer had pointed. A rock almost as large as a Legion cruiser passed through, harmlessly exiting on the other side.

"There is definitely magic here," White Witch offered. "But whether it is ambient magical energy, or a magic user, or even a magical intelligence, I cannot yet say. However..." she turned to Dragonmage. "Xao, would you share what you told me on the way?"

Dragonmage looked down, barely meeting the eyes of his teammates. Part of it was ingrained indirectness from his elders, and part of it was his residual shame. "I researched Dryad extensively. I was not sure, but... old legends say that there used to be a living planet, one of magic. Different from that Green Lantern Mogo, though. This one was supposed to be a benign planet of nature. It was alive in a passive way. Those settling on it would be blessed with beauty and natural riches, and those who dared harm it would meet its wrath." He paused, clutching his hands. "I never could find any source that conclusively it was Dryad. I searched, but found no maps or clues to its location. I had hoped... hoped..." He stopped. He had hoped that it was not Dryad, else that would have meant he had caused the death of a living planet. But then... what was one more life compared to all the other lives lost when Dryad blew up, or when Gil'd lost its oceans?

"Maybe we just don't know what we're looking for," Saturn Girl mused. All telepaths knew that making contact with an unusual, alien mind could be jarring at best, and debilitating at worst. "If we link together, maybe you can guide us?" Mysa nodded assent, and after a moment, so did Xao. Imra looked at Querl. "I think we need you in here as well, Querl. You know what's natural and what's not."

"Very well." Querl turned to give Kid Quantum, Gear and Babbage some last instructions, then opened his mind. He felt Imra's familiar presence touch his mind.

Imra settled into a floating position; it helped her concentrate. Forming a network between herself, Mentalla, Tellus, Mysa, Dragonmage and Querl, she reached out into the space around them. She and Mentalla and Dreamer had spoken about this a lot; many of their teammates thought their powers were easier to use than they were. But telepathy wasn't just reading a book. She let her mind orient itself. She felt Dragonmage's surprise as all six of them appeared as astral forms floating over the region of space.

She began to identify the minds of her teammates. Delya spoke up. "I can do that, Imra, so you can focus on searching and scanning." Imra thanked Delya by telepathically sending gratitude, and watched as Delya mapped each of their teammates minds and marked them with a floating Legion insignia. "Okay, what you perceive now is a sort of representation of the physical space around us," she explained. "We've "placed" our teammates' minds so you can ignore them... can you search around for something that could indicate a living being, or at least something out of the ordinary?"

Querl's face was impassive, but Imra detected the annoyance in his tone. "To me, it just looks like a planet forming at top speed, Saturn Girl."

"I think I see something!" Mysa pointed. All five of them turned to see a region of space where the starlight seemed to twinkle.

"I don't sense anything, but maybe... if I shift control to you, Tellus." Imra was slightly surprised to feel that the Hykraian was a bundle of doubts and anxiety; though everything she knew about Tellus indicated that he could overcome this, with time and experience. "It's okay, you can do this, and Delya and I are here to support." Delya sent encouragement through the link as well.

"I will try... my best..." As Imra passed the control over, she felt Tellus fumble at it, then take it. Then Tellus began to approach the twinkling...

"There is... there is..."

"WHY ARE YOU HINDERING ME?" All six of them felt the message stab into their minds, with a mix of pain and anger. "WHY DO YOU STOP ME FROM REFORMING MYSELF?"

"Saturn Girl... I think this is a bit beyond me," Tellus stammered.

"It's beyond all of us," Delya said drily, as Querl's face became a mask of alertness.

Imra steeled herself. "Please maintain control, Tellus, but allow me to send." She faced the entity, and slowly she could perceive some of it. It appeared as a green and brown sphere, with what seemed to be representations of trees growing out of it. "Are you Planet Dryad?"

"WHY DO YOU STOP ME?" It repeated.

Imra swallowed. "I... I would like to explain who we are, if you would like. If you will allow me to transmit something to you." She held up her hands in a sign of peace. "I promise, we will not hurt you. I just ask you to let me tell you are story."

"... VERY WELL..."

As Dryad became receptive, Imra transmitted memories and images she had practiced over the years. What the Legion was, what they did. She then followed up with stories of Xanthu, and how the Legionnaires were on it when asteroid fragments came crashing down - fragments they had only after realized must have been part of Dryad. And she then explained how they had followed it here, and what they had learned. Finally, gently, she shared their concerns about what could happen - thankfully, Dryad was located far enough away from any other planet that it had thus far only exerted minimal influence over their gravities and atmospheres. But, as the spinning disc of material grew larger and larger, it would cause greater and greater havoc. The United Planets and other Legionnaires were now clearing the area and standing guard over the most nearby planets; and those in the immediate vicinity were ready to help ensure nothing would go awry... but much could go wrong.

The sphere that was Dryad's mind looked up. Imra could feel the intense sadness and loss radiating from it. "I did not wish to hurt anyone, or a sister planet. How is Xanthu?"

"There was some slight damage, but nobody was killed," Imra replied gently. "We know you did not mean anything."

"I want to be whole again, and feel the life on me flourish," Dryad added.

"And that can happen, although it will only be safe at a natural pace," Querl said softly. "It could take millions of years."

"I don't know if I can take that pain," Dryad whispered.

"If you want..." Mysa offered. "Maybe we can let you sleep, help you go dormant. Magical beings such as yourself can do so..."

"And the process can continue naturally around you," Querl continued. Imra could feel his excitement.

"I... I have studied magical beings, I think I know how to help..." Xao offered. He thought about whether to confess his role in Dryad's destruction, but both Imra and Mysa quickly sent to him not to. Dryad did not need to know, and Xao was not directly responsible anyway.

"And when it is done, I will wake and feel life again?" Dryad asked, almost like a child.

"Yes."

"Then... please, I want it."

Mysa began to weave a spell. "Xao, if you will assist me..." Mysa's blue magical signature enveloped the essence of Dryad, even as Xao summoned a dragonform to also coil around the entity. "We will put you into a peaceful, dreamless sleep, while letting your processes go undisturbed at a normal pace," Mysa explained, more for Dryad's benefit.

"I feel... tranquil," Dryad whispered. "Very tranquil."

"If only we all could," Xao thought to himself as tears filled his eyes.

**************************************************************

"You all okay over here?" Kid Quantum asked as she eyed her team.

"I'm getting tired," Kinetix sighed as she sat down on the "floor" of her telekinetic sphere. She looked around; Brek was breathing more raggedly even as he held Zoe's hand; Sizzle had passed the energy flow back to Wildfire and was rubbing her wrists; and even Umbra was becoming more and more tight-lipped even as she stood, back straight, wielding her darkfield. Gear had retracted some of the instruments into his body. Only M'Onel and Babbage were still acting completely fresh.

"I don't want to disturb Imra and company," Jazmin sighed as she looked at the six, who were sitting in a circle. Imra had sent her a brief message outlining their plan, which Jazmin had shared to the wider group. But then she the telepathic contact had cut off, as Imra and the rest needed to focus their full telepathic might. Even as Mysa and Xao were casting their spells, the telepaths were lulling Dryad to a peaceful sleep...

"The chemical reactions are slowing down!" Condo exclaimed.

"Indeed, all processes are," Babbage intoned as it tapped on the console generated by Gear. "Soon we will be able to disengage."

"I can already feel the gravity fluctuations stabilizing," Thom called. "I feel the same!" Tel added.

Jazmin smiled as she watched her team's spirits buoy. "Well, gang, looks like we helped restore another planet today..."

"I can still barely believe it myself," Dirk laughed. "And I thought our work on Xanthu was amazing!"

"I think I'm gonna need to process this myself," Brek laughed as he lay down. "Anyone up for a drink after the debrief?"

"Me!" Dirk, Condo, Zoe, Tel and Jennifer all said in unison. "Make mine a double!" Drake quipped, to laughter all around. "I'll take a triple shot of pluberry liqueur too!" Candi added sweetly.

Jazmin shook her head as she playfully wagged a finger. "Only AFTER the debrief, okay? But we'll keep it short." Well, this was definitely one for the archives...

Feel daunted by the length of this thread? You can also check out the Recap Thread to catch up!

VOLUME 4: MOVING FORWARD

Xanth Prime, capital city of Xanthu

Echo, Troy Stewart of Earth (South Africa and Trinidad and Tobago); sound manipulation
Nightwind, Berta Skye Harris of Earth (Iceland) and Enwa; wind and air manipulation, enhanced vision

Uncanny Amazers

Porcupine Pete, Peter Dursin of Earth (Jamaica and Mexico); ejects quills from his body

*************************************************************

Nightwind looked up from her Omnicom and flight ring; left in command of the contingent on Xanthu, she had been dispatching Legionnaires and Amazers where they were needed most. Atmos had happily left the decision-making to her, while he channeled his frustration into lifting debris.

Beside her, Echo had his hands to the ground. He was using his powers to sense vibrations and search for victims. Next to him, Porcupine Pete was using his quills to mark areas where Echo had searched.

"Gosh, I wish I were up there in space watching a planet form... Don't you?" Pete asked.

"Hmmm... oh!" Echo looked up in surprise. "Yeah, I was annoyed at first, but I guess I've been too focused here to really dwell on it. We are making a real difference here, after all," he smiled.

Pete shook his head. "Echo, you really know how to make the rest of us look bad! You're just so good and perfect!"

Nightwind hid her own smile as she checked the positions of the rest of her away team.

*************************************************************

Legion World

Particon, Jennifer Sanchez of Earth (India and Philippines); "hard light" energy casting and manipulation, disruption of energy flow

Radion, Roy Travich of Earth (Italy and Madagascar); flight and emission of radiation (Uncanny Amazer)

*************************************************************

Radion grinned to himself as he reclined in the Legion's rec room. Debrief had been short and swift indeed. Dryad was dormant, it would form a new planetary body in millions of years, and space was safe with no immediate and lasting consequences. Nobody had died on Xanthu, and all disasters had been cleaned up - the Legion contingent there was packing up and heading home. And now he could have a drink or two before heading back to Xanthu. He looked around - the room was plush, but the Amazers' clubhouse was fancier. They didn't even have their own drinks bar...

"We need to talk." Roy scowled as Particon walked in. "Roy, why do you feel abandoned?"

Roy set his jaw. "We bounced around from the Workforce to fighting Mordru to joining the Amazers together, Jen."*

"I know, but when I went to join the Legion, I told you! I even asked if you wanted to join me, and you said no!" Jennifer snapped. Calming herself, she continued gently. "You can't blame me for this, Roy. I gave you plenty of time and space, but I tried to be there for you. You can't expect me to stay on Xanthu forever just because you are staying there too."

Roy looked up, then lowered his eyes. Jen was right, but why was it so difficult to admit and to accept it? Did he feel like he'd lost an opportunity? Was he angry that he'd been injured fighting Mordru, while Jen had escaped unscathed? Was it because everything felt so unfair?

"Talk to me, Roy. Why are you so angry at me?"

"I'm angry at myself!" Roy blurted out. Ashen-faced, he looked down.

"Look," Jen said as she forced Roy to meet her eyes. "While we're here, maybe you want to talk to Dr. Ryk'rr. She's a great listener, and more importantly she can see you without putting anything in your file - unless it impacts your ability to work, of course." Jen stood up. "And maybe after you've worked it all out, we can grab a Silverale some time... okay?"

"Yeah... would be nice." Roy smiled weakly.

"I'll ping you the Doctor's link," Jen smiled gently. She placed a hand on Roy's shoulder. "Be well, okay?" Then she walked away, as Roy stared at his Omnicom. Swallowing, he clicked on the link. "Hello, Doctor?"

*****************************************************************

White Witch, Mysa of Zarrox; sorcery

Dragonmage, Xao Jin of New Shanghai (Earth colony); sorcery (Reserve Legionnaire)

*****************************************************************
"That was a happy ending, wasn't it, Xao?" Mysa smiled over her cup of tea.

"I suppose," Xao mumbled. He took a sip, feeling the heat flow into him. "Dryad will be reborn, and the planet is alive. I just wish..."

"We cannot bring back the dead so easily, Xao," Mysa said softly. "But at least one day, Dryad will be full of life again."

"That is true," Xao said as he looked into his cup. He had hoped for more... but cruelly, life did not always live up to expectations.

"You helped a lot today," Mysa gently touched Xao's hand. "And as Dirk said... he has forgiven you. Perhaps one day, you can forgive yourself." She set her cup down. "I have to go meet Chameleon in a bit... but until then, would you like to walk with me through the gardens?"

"I would love that," Xao smiled shallowly. "I think I'll finish sipping my tea in one of them." He stood up, clutching the warm cup for comfort, as he followed Mysa out of the dining hall.

*****************************************************************

Pon, the Lesser Moon of Xanthu

**Kono of Sklar. Mass-shifting that allows her to phase. Her power may also have other unknown applications. Master thief and pirate.**

*****************************************************************
Kono watched silently as the Master Thief, the Pig, watched the viewscreen. "Yes, it is all coming along..." He glanced at Kono. "Are you satisfied, Kono?"

Her eyes blazed as she eyed him. But she chose her words carefully; she still remembered the pain of their last argument. "Yes, especially as I now understand why we could not use Dryad to recreate Sklar at once."

"No, Dryad is its own entity, and Sklar was not alive on its own..." The Pig gloated. "But now that Dryad is reforming... we can use it to our advantage. Now, be a good thief and continue to gather as much as you can... My little Rat."

Kono suppressed her anger as the Pig dismissed her. She hated working with him... but if she wanted her planet back, she would have to. Just for a bit longer.

*****************************************************************

IB's notes:

1) Particon and Radion both were rejected from the Legion in Legionnaires 43; they joined the Workforce but left to help fight Mordru (L* 48-51). They joined the Amazers after (Starman 50). Their paths diverge in Volume 1 .

Yay! I'm not the best at that to be honest...I try to make an effort with Xao but I tend to default to the 80s characterisations of most of the other DC canon characters I use, and DC never really thought about that stuff back then. I am gonna challenge myself to try and throw in some more multicultural background stuff as well though!

On with the new bits!

Thanks for the link back to Tinya and the others' altercation with her dad and the Luck Lords - I remember it happening, but it was good to reread it to get the details fresh in my mind! I think I have said this before probably, but I like that we have fanfics that have been going on here long enough to all have our own internal continuity to draw on

The little Espionage Squad vignettes were cute..."Orchid Sapphire" is such a good name for a sci-fi noir dame

Man, Roy is really not making any friends huh?

Candi and Shikari to the rescue! The others wanting to help but realising their limitations was well done.

Dryad!! I wasn't expecting that!!

Nice to see Cannus get another chance, and Val get to show off what he can do other than "just punch things"

The post-wedding chatter was realistic, seems like typical post-party recriminations/gossip


This made me LOL...reminds me of Dreamy's line back in The Universo Project about how Brainy loves her for her brain

re the team watching Dryad reform: once again it is fun seeing all the different Legionnaires being put to good use (and some of the newbies' frustration at not yet being a perfectly combined part of the teamwork machine like everyone else is) - and there are some good character bits in here as well, such as Tel being horny for Thom, and Brainy and Gates just being themselves.

Aww, poor Xao...I feel sorry for him still living in his guilt even though he played a big part in helping the planet acclimate to its natural processes.

Particon and Radion's chat at the end was a nice way to advance that subplot too - it's gratifying to see characters choose the more mature option over extending things out like a soap opera sometimes.

This was great, IB! The Legion working together to understand and help Dryad was definitely a highlight, I am a sucker for a story where everyone finds a way to matter. And I am looking forward to seeing what develops with Kono, her and Jo's friendship was one of my favourite things about the 5YL era!

I will do the same re cultural background / differences during some of the more quiet scenes!

glad you liked the links! lol when I checked the dates re when I first started this, I was floored.. over a decade of my life! I rely on the recap and links a lot too, because I often forget that I've done this or that. Or I remember, but not the fine details... like, I had to edit my Particon/Radion scene because I forgot that Particon had asked Radion to join the Legion once lol

Orchid Sapphire is so over-the-top, but I like having the Espionage Squad members enjoy their infiltrations

I have Harbi to thank for the post-wedding chatter, Harbi's comment earlier made me think that a lot of silly and embarrassing stuff probably did happen then

Gear's lines were inspired by his quipping/flirting with Kid Quantum around the time Robotica invaded. I like the idea of him becoming a silly joker type.

really glad you liked the Dryad scene, I super enjoyed writing it and thinking of how each character's personality would show up!

Cannus' bit I had planned for a while, but Val was an inspired edit. I was looking at my Legionnaire list and realized I hadn't done anything with Val for a while... and wanted to highlight how he can stand out even among a team with lots of super-strong types

Xao is complex and tends to be obsessive I'm torn myself between wanting to kick him, and thinking "well, he did indirectly cause a world to explode, so..."

yeah, I do like some conflict from time to time but I figured Radion SHOULD be mature enough by now (after all he's been through) to get help. of course, there are other characters (especially among the Cadets) who are not that mature...

thanks again raz! unfortunately I don't think this Jo and Kono are in a position to develop a friendship, but...